Post on 11-Nov-2014
description
Nutrient Dense Grazing Lisa McCrory, Earthwise Farm and Forest Beginning Women Farmer Conference March 22 & 23, 2012
Landbase: 158 acres owned, 16 acres rented Open land = 24 acres; 23 pasture, 1 acre crop land
Hand-squeezed Raw Milk certified organic
Hand-squeezed right in the pasture
Draft Animals
Sows and Feeder Pigs
Poultry: Heritage Turkeys, Meat birds, Layers
Layers and Turkeys hatched on the farm
Off-Grid System
Renewable Energy
Organic Vegetables, Flowers
Grazing Management
Grazing has made tremendous improvements on our fields
Key Ingredients to a good
grazing plan: Adequate rest in between grazings
Clipping pastures when needed
Providing water in every paddock
Move the animals often (every 12-48 hours)
Appropriate size of paddocks
Infrastructure Improvements • Water to every pasture
(gravity feed), piping
• Perimeter Fencing and other improvements through NRCS
• Returning tree plantation back to pasture
• Diverting water away from a pasture & barn and capturing it for use
Brontosaurus
Hired in 2010 to chip up the debris (tree tops, stumps, shrubs on 4 acres
or what was white and red pine
Field Management
Clipping when needed
Lime application
Other amendments
Grazing was making a
difference,
But we wanted to ramp it up:
• Become more self sufficient
• Provide a more nutrient dense food for our livestock
• Increase the biological activity in our soil
What I wanted to Address
• Increase Disease &
Pest Resistance
• Increase Plant Species Diversity
• Increase Forage Yields
• Reduce Livestock Health Issues
• Have longer growing season (productive life of plants)
Earthwise Farm and
Forest
Keeping Good Grazing Records : Forward planning and historical records
Important Conversions
Important Conversion Values:
PPM – Parts per million
PPA = Pounds per Acre
PPA = 2(PPM)
There are 2 million lbs of soil in the top 6 inches of soil
500 lbs per acre = 11.5 lbs per 1000 sq feet
100 lbs per acre = 2.3 lbs per 1000 sq feet
20 lbs per acre = .46 lbs per 1000 sq feet
5 lbs per acre = 2 ounces per 1000 sq feet
Macro Nutrients available in natural forms:
Magnesium Sulfate (epsom salts) = 20% Mg, 30% S
Gypsum = 23% Ca, 19% S
Sul-Po-Mag = 22%S, 22% K, 11% Mg
Soft Rock Phosphate = 22% P, 20% Ca
Hi Cal Lime = 38-40% Ca
Dolomitic Lime = 30% Ca, 10% Mg
P2O5: 75 PPM x 4.6 = 350 #/a
Micro Nutrients
Solubor = 20% Boron
Borax = 11% Boron
Cobalt Sulfate = 27% copper
Manganese Sulfate = 32% Manganese
Financials and Nutrients applied
18 tons lime @ $52/ton delivered = $940
2 ton SulPo Mag/Gypsum @ $550/ton = $1100
Micronutrients: Zinc Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate, Boron, Humates – applied at $75/acre = $750
Total amount invested on amendments for 2011
$2,790.00
Nutrients applied
13 acres of pasture
- 1 ton/acre lime
10 Acres of pasture
- 200# gypsum
- 200# sulpomag
- 10# solubor, 10# zinc sulfate, 15 # Manganese sulfate/acre, mixed with humates, (50% summer, 50% fall application
Contact Info
Lisa McCrory
Earthwise Farm
and Forest
Email: Lmccrory@hughes.net
www.earthwisefarmandforest.com
Phone: 802-234-5524